Ireland ranks first in FDI attractiveness for the sixth year running

Despite some serious accommodation issues, Ireland remains the number one destination for value in FDI, according to IBM.

For the sixth year running, Ireland has been named as the destination where you get the most value for money from foreign direct investment (FDI), beating countries such as Denmark and Sweden to the punch.

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Perhaps unsurprisingly to some, driving this job surge is the mass adoption of new technologies across multiple industries, with companies familiarising themselves with the internet of things and data protection.

Another noticeable finding is that, for the first time, the US has been pipped to the number one spot of the highest-ranking countries by estimated jobs, with India now leading the charge. India has close to 110,000 jobs available as of 2016, having jumped by as much as 30,000 on 2015.

The US is the largest country to see a decline in jobs, from more than 110,000 in 2015, to just over 100,000 in 2016.

Infographic: IBM

Brexit gets a mention

The UK’s decision to leave the EU also got a mention, with the report noting that so far, it has measured just a small 2pc decline in the number of jobs created.

“Interestingly, the impact of Brexit is also evident in outward investment by British companies, as greater uncertainty and a less favourable economic outlook cause these companies to rethink their international expansion plans,” the report said.

Despite Ireland’s continued success in attracting FDI, its ability to facilitate them has been put into question of late.

In a piece by Siliconrepublic.com editor John Kennedy, he warned that the issue of staff turning down roles here because of the cost and difficulty in finding a place to live in cities such as Dublin could potentially scare off companies in the years to come.

As an award-winning editor for Consumer Magazine of the Year 2013, Colm joined Siliconrepublic.com in January 2014 as a journalist covering AI, IoT, science and anything that will get us to Mars quicker.
When not trying to get his hands on the latest gaming release, he can be found lost in a sea of Wikipedia articles on obscure historic battles and countries that don't exist anymore or watching classic Simpsons episodes far too many times to count.